Addiction Counselling For Couples

Addiction Counselling For Couples in Burnaby and North Vancouver

Is addiction destroying your relationship?

Are you feeling hurt, betrayed and angry because your addicted partner keeps lying to you and breaking promises?

If you’ve had to share the person you love with an Addiction, you may feel like you’ve been held hostage on a roller coaster. It’s devestating to come to a place where you can’t believe what your spouse tells you anymore...because you’ve heard it all before.

Most likely you used to believe it all before. Sometimes you wonder if you’re crazy when actions are minimized, explained away or perhaps even blamed on you.

It’s hard to give up hope. But sadly, when time and time again, your partner chooses to do exactly what he or she promised not to do, you come to a place where you hit the wall.

If you feel like you’ve practically changed your life and done everything you could think of to help your partner stop or overcome their addiction, you need to stop and get help.

Vicky and Carl’s story: Rebuilding a marriage during Addiction Recovery

Carl and I have been married for 8 years. I love my husband but by the time I called Ina, I didn’t know if I could continue loving him. Carl’s drinking and gambling had created a web of lies and secrets. I felt like I never knew what was going to hit me.

Our relationship had no more trust left. Carl kept promising to change and often he would. Maybe for one week or two. We never made it longer than 3 weeks. Then I would find a visa bill, or our account in overdraft or something else. When things were going well, Carl wanted to be intimate. I couldn’t go there. The sex felt empty. I felt empty and drained. Then I would feel guilty.

Ina doesn’t only understand addiction. She truly understands what it is like to be the loved one of an Addict. She helped me recognize how my efforts to control things, my anxiety and my decreasing self-esteem were part of how Carl and I managed our rmarriage and his addiction. I thought I knew about boundaries but Ina’s unique way of working with boundaries and the body taught me a completely different way to not only manage my boundaries but to recognize when I was losing them.

We still have some ways to go. It takes time to rebuild trust and emotional safety. But we are both committed to doing the work. I always knew Carl needed to do recovery work. Knowing that I too have healing work to do has changed our relationship. We are feeling very hopeful. Thank you Ina for helping me and us rebuild our life together.

Couples and Family Addiction counselling in Burnaby

Working with an Addictions counsellor who specializes in helping loved ones of addicts will help you and your addicted spouse. While he or she works on Addiction Recovery, you will receive support to process and heal your anger and pain.

Most importantly, I will help you overcome your anxiety and guilt so you can set different boundaries. Together we will drastically change your self-care and decision making process when dealing with your addicted loved one.

As you regain trust in your inner voice and rebuild your self-esteem, as you start to release responsibility for your partner’s recovery and emotional well being, you will show up differently in your relationship.

These specific changes will impact your relationship dynamic in a positive way and will

actually support your addicted spouse on his or her journey of recovery.

Drug Addiction And Alcohol Counselling in Burnaby

You need courage to change. You need strength and the ability to manage your anxiety to stop trying to change the things you cannot change. And you need wisdom to differentiate between the two.

If you are reading this, you are in the process of gathering your courage. I will offer you my wisdom, skills and tools to support you on this journey of recovering your life individually and / or together.

Stop feeling powerless and call me today for a complimentary 20-minute phone consultation. Together we will identify how I can help you and map out your path to loving an Addict without losing yourself.